Latest news with #justifiedshooting
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Michigan City officer's shooting of South Bend man ruled justified due to 'deadly threat'
The actions of a Michigan City officer who fatally shot a South Bend man during a pursuit in April 2025 were ruled justified. On May 29, the Jasper County Prosecuting Attorney's office, acting as special prosecutor, found that the officer who shot a man on April 4 was legally justified in using deadly force to defend himself. Michigan City Police identified the officer who fired his gun as Sgt. Michael Oberle — a 15-year veteran of the department, The Tribune's reporting partners at WNDU-TV said — however a report from the prosecutor's office does not identify the officer by name. A Michigan City officer conducted a traffic stop around 5:30 p.m. at the 5800 block of South Franklin Street, near Walmart, for driving without headlights in reduced visibility, a Michigan City Police Department press release said. The driver and passenger in the car gave the officer their names. However, the passenger's name, who identified himself as 'Jose Martinez,' was associated with several active warrants, the prosecutor's office said. The officer began to investigate if the passenger was the same man, the prosecutor's press release said, but at this time, the passenger, who was later identified as Jose Meza, fled from the vehicle. Multiple officers, including Oberle, pursued Meza — a 21-year-old from South Bend — and observed Meza pull a firearm from his waistband and point it at the officers, the prosecutor's office said. Oberle was backing up the officer that initially conducted the traffic stop, Michigan City Police Chief Marty Corley told The Tribune. Meza fled across parking lots and hedges at a business before pointing his gun at Oberle, the prosecutor said. 'Believing that Meza posed a deadly threat, (Oberle) fired multiple shots, striking Meza,' the prosecutor's office report said. Meza fell to the ground, began to reach for his gun and Oberle fired two more shots, the prosecutor said. Meza was rendered first aid and transported to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead, the press release said. Indiana State Police District 13 Criminal Investigations Division investigated the shooting, finding evidence that showed Meza attempted to fire multiple times, but his gun malfunctioned, the prosecutor's office said. Oberle was placed on paid administrative leave during the investigation, a press release from Michigan City Police Department said. Indiana State Police presented the investigation to the county prosecutor's office for further review on May 21. The investigation is now closed, Jasper County Prosecuting Attorney Jacob R. Taulman said in a news release, and no charges were filed against Oberle. Email Tribune staff writer Camille Sarabia at csarabia@ This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Michigan City cop faces no charges as fatal shooting ruled 'justified'
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Yahoo
Sheriff's deputy who shot man won't be charged
A Frederick County Sheriff's Office corporal who shot a man in downtown Frederick Monday will not be charged in the shooting, Frederick County State's Attorney Charlie Smith said Thursday. In a statement, Smith said his office determined that sheriff's office Cpl. Gregory Morton's shooting of Cody Berg, 40, of Woodbine, in a parking lot in the 300 block of North Market Street was justified. Smith's office reviewed body-camera footage and consulted with investigators. 'As a result, it is our opinion that Corporal Morton did not commit a crime and therefore, no charges will be [placed] against Corporal Morton,' the statement said. The Frederick County Sheriff's Office said on Monday that Morton shot Berg after Berg, who had a knife, approached the deputy and refused to drop the knife after multiple warnings. Morton fired one shot, hitting Berg, according to the sheriff's office. The State's Attorney's Office is not releasing footage from Morton's body camera, or any other evidence in the case, at this time, the statement said, citing charges that are pending in the case. In a phone interview on Thursday, Smith said the decision not to release evidence related to the shooting is based on pending charges against Berg. At approximately 6:44 p.m. Monday, family members of Berg, who they said was experiencing a mental health crisis, were in the parking lot on North Market Street and asked Morton — who was already in the area at the time — for help. After the shooting, Berg was taken to a trauma center with injuries described as not life-threatening. Smith said Thursday the State's Attorney's Office consulted with the Frederick Police Department and has approved charges against Berg, but he was not sure whether they had been officially filed yet. Online court records did not include charges against Berg in the case as of Thursday evening. But in the statement, Smith said the decision not to release the evidence was temporary. 'In all police-involved shootings a full declination report disclosing and detailing all other evidence, including body worn camera footage, and the decision-making process as it relates to the use of force will be released by our office upon the conclusion of the pending criminal prosecution,' Smith wrote. Staff writer Ceoli Jacoby contributed to this story.
